Trip Report: Malaysia Airlines A330 MH191 Business Class New Delhi To Kuala Lumpur

Flight: MH0191
Airline: Malaysia Airlines
Aircraft: Airbus A330-300
Route: DEL to KUL
Departure: New Delhi Indira Gandhi Airport, Terminal 3 ; 9.25PM local time
Arrival: KLIA 1 (Kuala Lumpur International Airport) ; 5.15AM (+1) local time
Duration: 5 hr 20 mins
Cabin: Business Class
Date Flown: January 2017

I arrived at New Delhi airport less than 3 hours before departure time, but i was not too worried since i was already checked-in on my mobile app.

Nevertheless i proceeded to the Malaysia Airlines check-in counter to get my printed boarding pass.

The guy manning the counter was friendly enough to ask me if i had enjoyed my stay in Delhi, to which i gleefully replied "I had much fun and will deeply miss Paneer Tikka Masala"

I headed straight to the Imigration control only to find a really long quesue growing by the minute. There were 4 counters dedicated for Business and First class passengers, and the queue there was not too bad. There is no special lane for First class passengers and they do not get a higher priority than us (pity).


Upon clearing immigration, i quickly made my way to the lounge dedicated for Malaysia Airlines passengers. It is called ITC Hotels Green Lounge

Upon arrival, i showed my invitation card before being welcomed in.

I was not hungry but i managed to take a few bites. 

The buffet selection consists mainly of indian variety

I helped myself with some dessert too

The lounge was OK but it looked a bit tired. Magazines looked old even though they were latest issues

For this flight i had pre-booked seat 5A. However before take-off , one passenger came to me and requested to swap seat with me because he wanted to sit close to his wife who was seated behind me in 6A. Apparently this indian couple came with an entourage of family members , including a few kids and they wanted to be seated closely together. Everyone around me seemed to be his clan and they had occupied the front and middle row, which was about half of the cabin.


Honestly i would hate to be asked to swap seat when i had already made my selection in advance. In fact in one way it is inconsiderate to make such request under no real emergency. Most people with preferences, like me, make effort to choose our seats every time. More often than not a few factors come into consideration when selecting our seats. Yet some are brazen enough to request to swap seat because they think it is no big deal. It is surely no big deal if you are offering others a better seat - of course. I could see a lady seated in a seat across the aisle looking rather pissed off after she refused to swap seat with them. This family was trying to rearrange seating position of a few others just so that they can sit together as a family.

I then gave up my seat because i wanted to be a good sport. And i thought it was probably a good idea to stay away from such a group of people travelling together.

Meanwhile, the cabin crew were also busy rearranging seating position of the family members as I heard from one of the crew something along the line of "children are not allowed to sit alone or separated from adults". I observed that some of these 'children' are already teenagers. Funny rule.



The flight attendant looking after my area was accomodating and polite. However she seemed a little less organized and not fully in-control of our situation. After taking quite some time sorting out the big indian family's seating arrangement, she realized that she was behind time. To my surprise, she began taking meal orders hurriedly when the aircraft was gaining speed on the runway ready to take off - at which point she was supposed to be (calmly) seated.

Soon after that, the flight took off. The departure was delayed by about half an hour.

Good bye, Delhi 

The flight gained speed as it made its ascent into the skies 

Amenity kit is not offered on this flight. My take on this flight's hard product is similar to my previous review for KUL-DEL route, as you can read here

Then the crew started serving in-flight meal 

I had Ethiopian Yirgacheffe and Brazilian Santos coffee to go with chicken and lamb satay

Fresh fruits, salad and bread

While having my supper, i watched a movie called The Birth of A Nation (2016) starring Nate Parker. The movie is co-written, co-produced and directed by Nate Parker himself. A harrowing tale of African-american's fight against slavery. If you loved Django Unchained, you would love this.

I have genuine sympathy for black people in American history. I am glad slavery has long ended.

Main course: Pan seared salmon with garlic lemon beuerre blanc

After a satisfying meal, i prepared myself for sleep. No more meal was served after supper.

The plane was cruising at an altitude of 11277m , at 855 km/h ground speed.

Less than 2 hours before arrival i woke up. 

MH191 is a red-eye flight

There was full occupancy in business class cabin on this route.

The flight arrived on schedule at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA).

✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈✈


My earning from this trip (DEL-KUL):
Elite sectors: 2
Elite miles: 3852
Enrich miles: 4454

Summary:
Experience on this flight was comparable to that of KUL-DEL route. The cabin crew service was OK, it was hospitable, but it could be polished. Having said that, it did not make the experience on this flight any less enjoyable. I look forward to my next flight with Malaysia Airlines in the near future.

Verdict (Star Rating: 0 to 5)
Seat Comfort: 4.5
Cabin Staff Service: 4
Food & Beverage: 4.5
In-Flight Entertainment: 4
Ground Service: 4
Value For Money: 5
Recommended: ✓
Yours,
Dandyflier


Thank You for reading my blog.  Tell me what you think in the comment box below.